How Patrick Agyemang’s Shattered World Cup Dream Changes USA’s 2026 Roster
As Patrick Agyemang strolled through the lobby of the U.S. men’s national team’s 5-star hotel in the swanky Buckhead district of Atlanta late last month, the mother of two young soccer fans approached the lanky young striker.
“Are you a player?,” she asked. Agyemang stopped, flashed his 1000-watt smile and, somewhat sheepishly, confirmed that he was and introduced himself.
Witnessing this interaction was a timely reminder both of the national team’s place within the larger American sports landscape and of how the coming World Cup has the power to turn someone like Agyemang — a 25-year-old former Division III college player from Connecticut who’d never represented his country at any level until last year — into a mainstream celebrity in a matter of weeks.
At least it had.
On Wednesday, English second-tier club Derby County confirmed that Agyemang, probably a World Cup roster shoo-in for USA coach Mauricio Pochettino even before he scored his sixth international goal against No. 9-ranked Belgium on March 28, will miss the tournament after rupturing his Achilles tendon.
(Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)
It’s a dream-crushing blow for Agyemang, obviously. We’ll get to that in a minute. But it’s also a big loss for the U.S. and for Pochettino, who seemed poised to use the 6-foot-4 forward off the bench at the World Cup, or possibly even as a starter should top choice Folarin Balogun get injured or suspended.
This is the greatest World Cup fear for every player everywhere: because it comes just once every four years, even a relatively minor ailment at exactly the wrong moment can ruin what’s often a once-in-a-career experience. There’s no guarantee a player who can’t participate ever gets another chance.
All that said, Pochettino still has 26 available roster spots. If the assumption is that Agyemang would have taken one, an available place just opened up. That sure can’t hurt the odds of fellow strikers Ricardo Pepi and Haji Wright, who just went from probable inclusions to almost certain locks. It also boosts the chances of strikers who haven’t been called in lately (Josh Sargent, Brian White) but who are now possibly just one more injury away from serious consideration.
And there could be a knock-on effect down the roster. Since there’s no like-for-like replacement for Agyemang, Poch could bring another defender or midfielder or winger that he otherwise wouldn’t. A versatile option who can plug multiple positions, like 2022 World Cup alum Joe Scally, is another possibility.
We’ll find out when the former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain manager names his selections on May 26. What’s certain is that Agyemang’s loss will be someone else’s gain.
Talking to him that day in Georgia’s capital, it was clear that Agyemang fully understood that the opportunity o play in a World Cup on home soil was unique. After coming so agonizingly close to achieving every soccer player’s dream, something he said hits differently.
“This career goes quick,” the Agyemang told me. “You have to enjoy it.”
